


the kids are not alright (but they are working on it)

by Cat_inthe_Hat



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alan Deaton is a boss ass bitch you can't change my mind, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, And he ends up becoming the cool uncle to a bunch of kids, Fix-It, Found Family, Friendship, Good Theo Raeken, I'm just here to give those kids some happiness bc the show fucked them up enough, Implied/Referenced Child Neglect, Multi, Panic Attacks, Scott is a Good Friend, Sort of anyway, The Author Regrets Nothing, This is self indulgence to the bone lmao
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-20
Updated: 2019-07-17
Packaged: 2020-05-15 15:04:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19298170
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cat_inthe_Hat/pseuds/Cat_inthe_Hat
Summary: A puppy change everything.9 years old Scott McCall finds an injured puppy alone in the street and does the only logical thing- He takes him to their local Veterinarian. He has no idea about how he is changing his destiny with this simple action.That puppy ends up giving the kick start to a butterfly effect that changes the lives and the destiny of a group of kids who find themselves creating a brighter future not only for themselves but for Beacon Hills as a whole.Aka: Scott, Stiles and Theo start to hang out in the Vet clinic because of a puppy and Theo ends up talking about the doctors who haunt his nights and, Deaton being the badass druid he is, decides to do something about it. Saving a kid's future, it turns out, also affects others.





	1. Chapter 1

Scott finds him in front of Mr. Fallon’s house while riding his bike- Only in the street, his mom doesn’t allow him to go alone anywhere else even if he is already 10 years old and one of the tallest kids of his class-, actually Scott only hears him at first, it takes him good 5 minutes of wildly looking around until he finds the source of the pained sounds hidden under the leaves that pile up in front of Mr. Fallon’s house, he isn’t really one to clean it.

Scott approaches him carefully with the slowest movements he can manage, aware of the fact that he must look really threatening to a already scared animal, he keeps his hands up even if he isn’t sure the small dog understand that as non-threatening gesture and he counts it as victory when the small puppy only recoils slight when Scott drops to his knees close to him, not touching but close enough to it, he is unsure if he can even touch the puppy without him getting scared or without hurting him, his yellow fur is matted with dry and fresh blood even if Scott can’t see any injury, and he is so small and so skinny that Scott can see the bones poking out.

Involuntarily his eyes fill with tears, he isn’t dumb, he knows people do bad things with animals, remembers that old Mrs. Keaton, his babysitter and the best one in the world, will sometimes bring home dogs with big scars or still injured dogs that recoil away from touch even when Scott approaches them with treats or toys and cry out when his hand brush their fur even if he had never and would never hurt them, Mrs. Keaton had explained to him that not all people are as good as him with animals, that some didn’t like them and thought they could hurt them because of it, and when Scott asked his mom why someone would hurt a innocent animal she had only sighed, kissed his curls and told him that sometimes people are just mean without reason, but this is different. He never saw a dog so small so hurt, most of the dogs Mrs Keaton bring home where older, some with white fur already, and she usually brings them when they are less injured, this is the first time Scott sees a abused dog like this and he feels his heart hurting for him.

He thinks about what he should do. He can’t just leave the puppy here in the cold, hurt and hungry, so he does the only thing he can think off, he reaches out to the puppy with the slowest movements, just like Mrs Keaton taught him, and with utter gentleness he scoops the puppy in his arms and starts walking home, where his mom is, having one of her few days off, he glances at his bike but shakes his head and keeps walking, he can come to pick her up later, the puppy still crying in pain in his arm is more important right now.

“MOM!” He screams as soon as he stops at the front door, unable to open the door without moving the puppy and probably causing him pain “Mom we need to go to Dr. Deaton clinic! Mom, please we need to help him FAST”

His mom opens the door before he can finish the second sentence and it takes her half a second to spot the dog and the blood in his fur as well as her son’s upset expression and Melissa McCall is nothing if not a woman of action and a big heart, be it towards human or animals, so she just takes the puppy from her son’s arms to give him a closer look and starts walking back home searching for a box and some clothes she can use to make the puppy more comfortable.

“Go pick your bike while I get him more comfortable, we are going to help him okay sweetie?”

“He is going to be already right? Dr Deaton will fix him?”

“I’m sure Dr Deaton will do everything he can to help him” Melissa says not wanting to give Scott hope in case the puppy is beyond help, but also not wanting him to worry even more

The boy nods and takes off to where he left his bike and Melissa keeps searching, making sure to not cause the puppy any more pain, and when Scott comes back she has already found everything she needed and before he could ask she gives him the box to carry and hold in the car, and while she is driving she sneaks a look in the backseat to find Scott gently petting the dog’s head and murmuring soft assurances and her heart is filled with pride with how good Scott is.

When they arrive the clinic is already closed but Deaton’s car is still there so Melissa tries her lucky and knocks, Scott almost vibrating with nervous energy at her side, and lets out a breath when the veterinarian opens the door for them, takes one look in the box and usher them inside.

“Sorry for coming after you are closed” Melissa says while Deaton carefully takes the puppy out the box and begins to examine him “But Scott was frantic and the puppy is in a bad shape”

“No problem” Alan smiles back at her reassuringly and then turns to look at Scott with the same kind smile “Scott can you tell me where you found him?”

“He was hiding under the leaves Mr Fallon never cleans, i heard him crying out and found him there and Mrs Keaton told me that you help animals so i told mom we had to bring him to you.”

“That was very good on your part Scott, you probably saved this puppy life, you did the right thing”

That was clearly the right thing to say because Scott just lets out a big breath and smiles a little, blushing slight at the compliment but his eyes are still worried and focused on his new small friend, Melissa puts her hand in his shoulder and together they watch Deaton work until he finally takes off his gloves and turns back to them.

“Now he just needs to rest and recover, but I’m hopeful he will be fine, Scott found him in the nick of time”

“Thank you doctor, how much is it going to cost?” Melissa asks and bites her lip, money is tight this month but she can’t just abandon the puppy, it would utterly break Scott’s heart and she can push herself to do more shifts, one of her coworkers is going in vacations and it’s not like they have anyone to fully cover her shifts yet, Melissa can volunteer

“Don’t worry about it Mrs McCall, it’s on the house” He shakes her head at her words and before she can argue he completes “I do volunteer work for some ONGs all the time, i can’t in good conscience charge you anything for saving a puppy’s life.”

“Are you sure?” She asks again but can already feel a bit of relief setting into her heart

“Of course I am” He smiles at her again, and then winks at Scott who grins shily back “Otherwise what example i would be giving to this brave hero we have hero?”

They say their goodbyes shortly after, it's a Sunday and while Melissa has an early shift Scott has school to think about and they can’t use more of Deaton's free time, Scott lingers unsure to leave the puppy alone but when the veterinarian suggest that he can come to visit him another day- “And of course you can bring your friends I’m sure the puppy will love the company”- the boys brighten and with a last long look to the sleeping, finally peaceful, dog follows Melissa back to her car.

 

* * *

 

Mrs Keaton is the best babysitter in the world, both Scott, Stiles and Theo will vouch for that.

She has been taking care of Scott for longer than he can remember, Mrs Keaton told him that when she was really sick and in the hospital it was Scott's mom that took care of her and made her company and that was when they met and when Melissa needed a new babysitter for him Mrs Keaton was eager to offer herself, free of any charge even, she has told both Melissa and Scott hundred times that ever since her husband passed away and her children moved to bigger cities her house is too quiet and lonely and that having someone there to talk with is payment enough, Scott thinks that her children are really dumb for not visiting her more often and making her feel lonely, Mrs Keaton has kind eyes, the best histories, and the most delicious cookies Scott ever tasted, nevermind that as a retired teacher she is like the best help in homework a boy could ask for, she treats him like he thinks a grandmother would do and so he never really minded spending time with her, especially not after she started looking after Stiles too.

It is not like they didn't hanged out at Mrs Keaton's home before she became his babysitter as well, actually when Stiles' mom got worse, started to have less lucid moments and started to go to the hospital more and more, he spend so much time in her home playing with Scott and even eating his meals there that Mrs Keaton pulled the Sheriff- Who was working himself to the ground trying to do his job, take care of his sick wife and be there to watch over his son all at the same time- aside and offered to formally look after Stiles since he spend so much time there because of Scott anyway.

Claudia, stuck in one of her less than ideal states, threw a fit but the Sheriff agreed in the same minute, relieved his son would be in a safe place with a trustworthy person.

Theo was the last one to meet Mrs Keaton and start staying with her, before that his parent hired some fancy babysitter for him and his sister that Theo absolutely hated because in his own words she wouldn’t let him do anything other than stay in his room and do his homework, and she wouldn’t even help him with it. But after the three of them started to hang out and Theo started to spend most of his time there with them instead of at home Mrs Keaton talked with his parents to convince them to let her start to look after him too, the idea was appealing to Mrs Raeken because Mrs Keaton wouldn’t charge them and they could start paying less to their other babysitter since she would be looking after one child not two, but Mr Raeken was more skeptical and pointed out that this way they would have to drive Theo to her home and pick him up, where in this current arrangement that wasn’t a preoccupation, but Mrs Keaton, like the absolute boss she is- Stiles’ words- had answer for that, Theo could take the bus with Scott and Stiles and she would pick him in the stop that was just two streets away from her home and she could drive him home as well, they just had to give her the time they wanted him home.

And that settled the matters and the three boys started to spend basically all their time together. It made them grow closer, more like siblings than friends at some point, so when Scott arrives at school Monday all he wants to talk about is the puppy he rescued and the two other boys are as eager to see him as Scott, both easily seeing how important that is to the latino boy.

So when Mrs Keaton picks them up in the bus stop the first thing she hears about is the puppy, and she knows her boys enough to see the point they are trying to make but are unsure if it's something they can ask of her so the retired teacher hums and pretending she doesn’t know the answer she will get asks.

“You truly is that puppy's hero Scott I'm really proud of you! And I also would like to see him myself, you boys wouldn't mind if we went to the clinic after eating do you?”

“Of course not!” Scott beams at her and Theo nods quietly while Stiles jumps in victory and almost falls flat on his face

She chuckles and urges them home where the food is already waiting for them as usual. They eat even faster than usual and half an hour later Alma is pulling her old but well conserved car in front of the vet clinic and leading three eager boys inside. Deaton greats them with a warm smile and before Scott can even ask he is already leading them inside to where the puppy is already waiting for them, a small little thing bandaged and being injected with fluids but whose tail shows signals of happiness when he spots Scott and even when the other two boys get closer, careful and slow waiting for a signal that the puppy wouldn’t like their approach, he doesn’t flinch just stares at them with big trusting eyes.

The boys are utterly sold and Alma chuckles and exchange a smile with Deaton who shakes his head but there is something warm in his face. Alma has known him for years, a good man, sure a bit mysterious, keeping his fair share of dark secrets that she thinks are exclusive to Beacon Hills but that isn’t any of her business, what matters to her is that Alan Deaton is good man who does what he can to help animals and people alike.

They stay there for a good part of a hour, she sits in a chair and watches both the veterinarian work as well as the boy gently pet the dog and talk about names for him- Deaton said that since it was Scott who found and saved him it should be him to pick a name-, the three of them are quieter than she ever saw them, aware of exactly how important it is to keep quiet in what they call a animal hospital.

After that they end up building a routine that involves almost daily trips to the vet clinic, Deaton doesn’t mind the company he assures Alma one day, the boys are quiet and Scott becomes deeply impressed about the work the veterinarian does, always asking questions and asking it there is anything he can do to help, Alma has no doubt that she is looking to a future veterinarian and it makes her smile, and when she speaks with Melissa she can see that the woman has that soft look of pride that means she will do whatever it takes to allow Scott to pursue his dream:

“It’s also good for the animals” The man explains one day after they come in and the woman gives him a coffee and the boys go straight to the back to see the patients “They are very gentle with them and it helps to get some of them used to positive human contact, besides most of the time they even feed them for me.”

Alma smiles, kindly, but there is a hint of something in there too, a silent acknowledgement that maybe the animals aren’t the only ones who like to have someone around.

The puppy heals.

Scott calls him Leaf, because he found him among them and the puppy barked happily when he heard the suggestion. They end up finding a forever home for him, a nice young couple who lives in Alma’s street who already has two rescue dogs and promises to let the boys stop by to pet Leaf. Her and Deaton expected the boys to be sad, and truly there are wet eyes and quivering lips when they hug him goodbye, but as Theo puts in later that day they are glad Leaf found a good home where he will have friends and a family to love him.

* * *

 

Deaton fully expects the visits to stop when Leaf gets adopted and tries to pretend he wouldn’t miss Alma and the boys, Scott with his curls and bright smile who has a heart too big for his body, Stiles with big eyes and a mouth that is never closed for long and whose smiles hide a pain too big for someone so young and Theo with light eyes and a wit quick humor but who also started to look pale and hunted as the days went by making all of them worried.

The clinic will feel a bit lonely now he just knows it, before he never knew it could be different from the constant silence of him and the animals, he even considered it peaceful and calming to be alone with his thoughts save his patients and his owners, but now he has experienced what is to have the company of three gifted kids and their caring and funny babysitter and the place will feel empty without them and Deaton is sure that the animals will also miss their friends who have the energy and the time to play.

But surprisingly, or maybe not that much, the next day Alma still arrives with her loud old car and three excited boys and Deaton allows himself to smile when they enter, excited as always but also showing a shyness that they had previously left behind after the first days, Alma stops behind them and smiles at Deaton fondly.

“We would like to know if we can still show up to see you and your patients even if Leaf isn’t here anymore” The older woman speaks and there is mirth in her expression who becomes more clear when the boys blush and hang their heads waiting for his answer.

“Of course you can, all of you are always welcome here”

The boys cheer, Stiles as always louder than the others, and the big smiles and bright eyes alone make him even more certain about this decision, this will be good he realizes, not only for the boys or the animals but for him as well, ever since the fire Deaton finds hard to interact with people outside his job, finds it hard to form bonds with them and has ever since convinced himself that he doesn't mind the self-inflicted loneliness and silence, but those kids and their innocence and curiosity may be just what he needs to remember to not close all the doors.

The three disappear in the back to say hi to their furry friends and Alma looks at Deaton with the same found expression.

“I hope we aren’t crossing any limit, but they are sad that they wouldn’t be coming here anymore and somehow worried themselves sick about who would play with the animals and help you. If you don’t want us here i can find a way to keep them away.”

“I truly don’t mind” The druid smiles at her, small but genuine “You are a good company, both for me and for the animals”

So their routine is never broken and the boys continue to grow closer and closer and the trust they have on the two adults also grow day by day.

(And that is what changes everything in the end, trust and love, people willing to believe, someone willing to share his darkness and help him overcome it.)


	2. Chapter 2

As soon as the boys arrive Deaton knows there is something wrong.

Actually scratch that there is something wrong for quite some time it was just never this clear before. More specifically there is something wrong with Theo, something quite serious if you ask Deaton.

The boy has dark bags under his eyes like he has not slept in days, his eyes are always downcast and there is a emptiness growing in them that chilies him to the bone, he has started to avoid physical contact like the plague, even as much as a casual brush of arms enough to make him hiss and flinch and his mood is getting worse as well, not really mean spirited but Theo is consciously or not distancing himself.

Today it looks like the day it will all blow out and nothing Deaton imagined could got close to the truth.

“What happened?” He asks straight away because no one looks in the mood for small talk and he is both curious and worried

“Something happened at school…” Scott starts in a small hesitating voice but stops himself looking confused and worried and glancing at Theo

“Theo punched a guy. Like _reeeeeeeeally_ punched, there was like a lot lot lot of blood coming out of his nose because you know noses bleed a lot, like head wounds, and it made this loud crack sound and I'm pretty sure it means its broken now” Stiles is not as shy as Scott to tell the truth even if the look on his eyes are the perfect mirror of the other

Deaton blinks. Theo never showed signs of being violent, rather the opposite actually, he is the quietest one in their little group especially in the last weeks and he can't imagine what would drive him to such a thing. He looks at Alma but the woman looks just as lost as him. Before anyone can say anything else, before questions can be asked a sob draws their attention.

Theo is crying.

Actually, crying doesn't come close to it. He has tears falling out of tightly shut eyes and sobs manage to get out even if he is biting his lip hard enough to draw blood, his shoulders are shaking but his whole body looks to be following it's example, his breathing is irregular and labored and it takes Deaton half a second to realize Theo is having a panic attack.

Alma and the boys must have reached the same conclusion because in the blink of an eye Scott and Stiles are searching his bag for a inhaler and Alma is on her knees lightly touching Theo's shoulders and trying to get him to breath with her, to open his eyes.

“I'm a monster” The boy rasps out still breathing unevenly and it takes all his strength to push the words out but he doesn't seem able to stop now ‘'I’m a monster, they are right, they are right, I’m just a monster, a monster and everyone hates me, they hate me because I’m a monster and no one can love a monster, I’m dirty and wrong and a monster and the only thing I’m good at is hurting people I’m a monster…”

He runs out of breath and Deaton feels both frozen and hot, his heart twisting in both worry for this boy and pure hatred for whoever is telling him those things. Alma looks close to tears herself as she consoles him and snatch the inhaler from Scott's hands, both him and Stiles looking frozen and shocked.

It takes the good part of an hour to get Theo to calm down and by the end of it he looks exhausted and ashamed but both adults have very pressing questions for him.

“Theo who are ‘they’?” Deaton asks softly crouching next to the boy “Who is telling you those things?”

“The doctors”

“What doctors?” Alma asks alarmed

“I don't know” Theo lets another sob burrowing his head in her shoulder “No one else sees them, they, they, they come at my room while I’m sleeping and they take me to this weird place and they hurt me they hurt me so bad and they keep saying those thing about how I’m weak how I’m wrong and bad and about how they are going to make me perfect but it hurts, it hurts so much but no one else sees them and my parents don't believe me, they do _n’t_ believe me they just tell me I’m too old for those silly stories and Tara doesn't believe me either, she doesn't even wants to listen and I’m so tired but I can’t sleep because they will be there and and…”

“Shhh, shhh sweetie we are here” Alma hugs the boy and after a moment of hesitation Scott and Stiles join him murmuring comforting words and promises that they believe him and that they are going to fix it

Deaton joins in the hug when Theo looks at him with wet desperate blue eyes as if begging him to believe in his words and the druid can only wonder how many times adults have heard those cries and told him to shut up or ignored him. There is dread building inside his heart because Deaton believes Theo, knows that there are things out there who could and would hurt a boy like that, and that is more terrifying than anything else.

It's been a long time since Alan worried this much and the feeling is quite unpleasant.

He doesn’t know how long they stay like that but eventually Theo’s breathing evens out and he falls into a restless sleep, Stiles and Scott are unwilling to let go of him, eyes shining with worry and helplessness and Alan smiles at them even if he doesn’t feel a drop of the confidence he is trying to pass. He gets up and helps Alma do the same, the older woman doesn’t complain about her knees even if he knows it must have hurt for her to keep that position for so long, and both adults retreat to the corner, close enough to keep a eye on their boys but not to be heard by them.

“Alan…”

“I know” He sighs with as much worry as her “Everything about this sounds terrible.”

“He has been acting weirdly for weeks, almost a month, but every time me or the boys asked he would shut down even if was obvious he wanted to talk, I suppose that if his family has been dismissing him and he got scared we would do the same. But Alan… What could be doing this to him?”

The “what” gets his attention more than anything else. He gives Alma a long look, studying her not as subtly as he could and the woman just smiles at him and chuckles lightly but a bit sadly as if she understands exactly what he is thinking.

“I was born and raised in this city Alan, I have lived through enough weird unexplained things to know that there are more things in this world than what I can see. You don’t have to explain anything to me, your secrets are yours to keep and share as you please and I will not demand them, I just want to know what is happening with Theo and what I can do to help him. I can’t just stand here and watch him suffer, especially not after he finally opened up to us.”

“I see, thank you Alma” He smiles lightly at her but then sighs again while looking at the three boys who are still on the floor cradling Theo between them as if that can keep him safe from whatever haunt his dreams “I’m afraid I don’t know what can be doing this to him or even their reasons for it, but I can and will look into it as my top priority, for now I think the best we can do is be there for Theo when he needs us.”

“We need to make him understand that what those doctors are telling him are not true, those monsters are preying on his insecurities because they know it will make him doubt everything.” She looks angry, eyes blazing and Deaton understand the feeling “Do they want him isolated and alone? Maybe it has something to do with that?”

“Maybe, they are clearly trying to poison his mind and know what buttons to push so I don’t doubt they have been watching him either.” The idea of something unknow and clearly malevolence preying and spying on an 9 years old boy makes him sick

“I’m going to suggest a lot more of sleepovers to his parents, they usually don’t mind if I promise to take him to school and to return his clothes washed so it would be a problem, I think it’s better if he has someone who believes him.”

“Good idea, and I don’t think those two are leaving his side so soon either so that’s good for now.”

It’s not even a band aid but it’s all they have for now, Alan will start researching as soon as possible and hopefully they will fix this situation as soon as possible and the boys will be able to keep living their normal, danger-free lives.

As Deaton predicted Alma is meet with horrified shocked eyes when she starts to mention going home to the two awake boys, Theo still passed out from exhaustion making her heart clenches with pain and worry, and Stiles is protesting before she can finish it, Scott nodding empathically behind him. She was already expecting it so she merely smiles at them and goes to make some calls while Deaton carries Theo to her car the other two following him so closely she is sure Stile is actually stepping on his feet.

She calls Melissa first, she can’t tell the truth so she just says that something happened and Theo is deeply upset and the boys don’t want to leave him alone and the woman fills the blanks and she sounds grateful and guilty at accepting her request because there was some big accident and they are packed and she doesn’t think she will be out anytime soon even if she had promised Scott they would watch Pixar movies until bedtime. Alma is quickly to reassure the mother and promise her that Scott will not be upset, that they will have other days to do it.

Claudia doesn’t pick up when she calls so Alma knows it is a bad day, Claudia always answer her calls quickly almost as if she stays at the side of the phone just in case it happens but when she is having a bad episode someone could scream their throats raw outside her door that she wouldn’t respond to it. The Sheriff answer in the fourth call apologizing for not answering before and he sounds so exhausted she can feel it thought the phone so he also shares Melissa’s guilty gratitude at the offer and that is another problem solved.

That night her boys are sleeping in two mattresses in her living room, unwilling to let Theo sleep alone and the boy had woken up briefly after a nightmare _(Just a nightmare this time, bad dreams not bad things doing bad things thank God)_ and seemed just as unwilling to let go of the other two or even to enter a bedroom, and she sits by the couch and looks over them, mug of tea in her hand and the TV on as background noise, set in watching over them the whole night as if it will make any difference on this terribly scary situation they have found themselves into.

Even if she can’t fight his monsters, she will be here to take care of him after each round.

 

* * *

  

Scott doesn’t know what to do.

He feels sick, a bit of the same fear he felt when he found Leaf all alone and injured and didn’t know if he would be alright, if he was doing the right thing, if the adults would truly be able to help, but this time it’s worse, something ugly that settled itself in his stomach and refuses to leave.

This is Theo they are talking about.

Theo who shares his lunch and his pencils and his class notes and his expensive games and toys (Things that Scott’s mom would never be able to pay so as much as he wants them he never asks for it). Who just listen to him and to Stiles when they talk about home, about Stiles’ mom or Scott’s dad and how much they miss them even if they lost them in different ways, Theo who always knows when Scott is going to have a asthma attack or when Stiles needs to burn his excess energy, who has the best taste in comic books and knows how to draw better than their substitute teacher.

It’s Theo.

And there is something hurting him, someone telling him bad hurtful things that make him get sad and think that they don’t want to be his friends. After that day in Dr Deaton’s clinic Scott is hyper aware of all those things, of the dark bags he is used to seeing on his mom, of the flinches that make his heart hurt in ways he doesn’t understand.

Scott feels lost, scared and desperate to do something to make things better, to make him happy again. But Mrs Keaton and Dr Deaton don’t know what is hurting him even after almost two weeks of research and both him and Stiles feel like their hands are tied, like they are just standing there while Theo suffers.

He doesn’t tell anything to his mom because she is so busy, so worried about everything all the time that Scott can’t bear to add anything else to her burden, he may be young but he knows things, has listened to enough arguments about money and bills and extra shifts to know how rough things were and can imagine how worse they must be now that dad is out of the picture, he can’t go to her for advice what hurts in a different way. But he tries to imagine what she would say, what she would suggest.

His mom likes to hug his sadness away, to brush away his tears and remind him of how loved and important he is, how amazing he is at doing certain things and that is okay if he isn’t good at other things, if he makes mistakes, because he can learn, because he is allowed to be wrong and grown. So that is what he tries to do and instructs Stiles to do as well.

They stick closer than ever to Theo, always touching in some small way until he stops flinching around them and starts, slowly so slowly, touching back like they did before. When he looks especially sad they make a point of being cheerful, of including him in things and reminding him they are there, they laugh and joke but when Theo talks about the doctors they listen without judgment.

(They believe in him, later Theo will tell them that that meant the world.)

Maybe it’s not the right thing to do, maybe is not helping at all but it’s what he can think of doing and Theo starts to smile a bit, he even laughs at one of Stiles’ jokes and he joins him in his plans again dragging a not at all reluctant Scott along.

They have each other and that must mean something right?

 

* * *

 

Alan gives up on researching at the end of the third week. He isn’t getting nowhere, he can’t find any creature that matches the description Theo gives him and not even anything that does the things that those things are doing to him, it’s even more worryingly and horrifying as it sounds.

But giving up on research doesn’t mean giving up on Theo, he wouldn’t do that under any circumstance, it just means he will have to get creative and go straight to ways of keeping those things away from the boy even if getting rid of them completely would be the best option.

His first action is go straight to the classics, mountain ash is surprisingly versatile and strong in keeping bad intentioned creatures away and, forever grateful that Theo’s family lives in a rather high end neighborhood with not many neighbors and a lot of green area making it not that difficult to bury mountain ash around his house. It’s not fool proof and guarantees nothing since the dirt will make it more difficult for it to work so the next time Alan sees Theo the first thing he asks him is when his parents will be out of town again.

Mr. and Mrs. Raeken go to a relative’s house and take their older daughter with them a week after that question and Alan summons his favorite helpers for a more direct approach.

Mixing mountain ash with paint creates an effect as good as putting it around the room in a circle and it’s not hard to find Theo’s room color, a baby blue, in a store.

Painting said room is another story when your painters are a druid, a retired teacher and three overexcited boys who are so eager in their hopefulness it causes more trouble than not.

Alan leaves the house with his clothes ruined and paint drying in his scalp and can’t find in himself to feel mad about it because the boys look so proud of their job that only a monster would say anything about the mess they created and the two adults had to fix. For one afternoon they acted like kids, like 9-year-old kids who only worry is homework and hiding their pranks from their parents, it makes them feel normal, takes away the shadows that usually hides in their eyes.

(They repeat the experience with Alma’s house, she is adamant in creating a safe space for Theo and it’s worth it even if only for the look the boy gets in his eyes, looking grateful and overwhelmed as if he can’t believe she would do something like that for him.

It’s both heartwarming and heartbreaking.)

And lastly Deaton gives Theo a amulet to wear all the time, just in case the doctors can reach him when he isn’t sleeping, also in case the mountain ash guarding him is not as effective as they all hope, a wood necklace infused with all protection he could think off. It’s simple but powerful and the druid hopes with all his faith that it will be enough, that the strength of his own desperation will grant the protection Theo deserves and needs so much.

And holding their breaths they wait.

They wait for days, for weeks, for months.

Until three months after Theo started to use the necklace, they can release that breath because the nightmares stopped, the pain stopped, the voices whispering poison in his mind stopped, the doctors stopped. He stops flinching, starts sleeping more, eating more, interacting with his friends more, and even if sometimes he gets nightmares, if he never went back to being the same kid from before…. That’s fine, that’s more than fine, because they are there for him each step of the way.

(And just like that story changes.

Because of a puppy, because of a dedicated babysitter and a lonely druid who believe a boy and save him from the creatures that haunt his dreams. They save a boy and they change everything without meaning to, without knowing what they are doing.

Story changes and more lives get changed as a result, touched by events that would not happen otherwise.)

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay I’m taking some big liberties here with the Dread Doctor bc c’mon I can’t believe they inject themselves with weird ass things and don’t get any sort of weakness from it, like they been drinking werewolf juice for DECADES I stand that mountain ash could hold them back even if a little, and even if it can't this whole fic is a big fuck you to cannon so like, whats a drop to someone in a storm??  
> And at least in my personal head cannon for this fic, that i didn't include here but may come up later, is that the reason the Doctors leave Theo alone isn’t only because of the protection but because he becomes too much trouble™ now that people believe in him and even if they erase their minds he can just tell them over and over again and they will believe him over and over again.


	3. Chapter 3

Claudia Stilinski dies the next year.

They can’t say it was a surprise or something unexpected and maybe that is the biggest tragedy of it all, the fact that both Noah and his son watched as her health grew worse and worse until she was a ghost of the woman they knew and loved. They watched as she faded out knowing what would happen but unable to do anything to stop it.

It’s Melissa who first runs into the hospital room when the machines start to go crazy, she who grabs a frozen Stiles and drags him out of the room and holds him outside even when reality kicks in and he starts trashing and screaming wanting more than anything to go back to his mom, to hold her hand again.

It’s Melissa who holds him in her arms like he is her own child, calming him down from his first ever panic attack and murmuring soft calming nonsenses in his ears until Noah arrives looking like he ran all the way to the hospital a broken expression in his face that only got worse when he saw Stiles, when he held his son in his arms and the boy sobbed and sobbed, a sound so painful that everyone around them felt his pain.

It’s Melissa who drives Scott and Theo to see Stiles the next day, who brings food to last them at least three days, who gathers their laundry to do with her own, who makes tea for Noah even when he protests and tries to do it himself. It’s her who sits with him while he cries and cries for both his pain and Stiles’, who hugs him and cries too because Claudia was a friend, almost a sister after their children are born, and it pains Melissa to lose her too, to know that her dreams of finishing that painting, of showing Stiles the sea, of having a baby girl, of building that garden, will never happen.

It’s Melissa who calls Theo’s parents to ask permission for a sleepover when it becomes clear that both boys will not be moved from Stiles’ side and the boy himself seems unwilling to let go of his friends, buried between them under a makeshift pillow fort that eventually gets moved from his room to the living room where the five of them fall asleep together.

At the funeral Melissa volunteers to drive them after seeing how badly Noah’s hands shake and he is so grateful that her heart grows heavier and heavier. Alma also arrives early bringing Theo with her and, maybe the most surprising presence of all, Deaton also arrives early and Stiles runs to hug him just like he did to Alma minutes before.

They sit close together, Scott holding Stiles’ hands during the whole ceremony while Theo gives him looks that seem to speak of things none of the adults understand.

It’s Melissa who first supports Stiles’ in his grief but soon enough all his loved one join her, giving him all the love and support he needs. They are family and family stand together in both the good and the bad moments after all.

* * *

 

Scott, Stiles and Theo are best friends. They love each other, know every dark secret, every insecurity the other holds and as far as they are concerned they are brothers.

But the good thing about them, the thing that makes Melissa, Noah, Alma e Deaton so proud of them is the fact that they all have big hearts, are full of love and know when to extend a helping hand, they are good kids who know life can be tough and choose to be gentle instead.

* * *

It’s Scott who befriends Erica first.

They are 11 years old and stuck in the infirmary after a gym class from the deeps of hell where the substitute teacher had given zero thought to their medical conditions and made them participate with the rest of the class. Scott had an asthma attack that seemed to last forever and Erica had a seizure.

That send both, alone since the man had stayed behind to control a bunch of concerned curious 11-year-old, to the infirmary by a teacher who didn’t seemed too guilty for triggering them. Scott is not used to be here alone, usually when he has an attack that send him there either Stiles or Theo, maybe both, are here with him, calming him down and making sure that the nurse knows what she is dealing with (Thankfully Magda finds it endearing enough to not mind) but Theo has a bad case of the flu and is unable to leave his bed and it’s the week of the anniversary of Stiles’ mom death and like last year he didn’t show up to school, so Scott is all alone with just this unknown girl as company, trying to break the uncomfortable ice he offers.

“Nurse Magda is nice, if you want she will call one of your friends to hang out with you until you feel good enough to leave.” He sends her a tentative smile, taking in the way she is curled into herself in the bed, looking close to crying

“And who exactly I could call smartass?” Erica bites out but instead of sounding angry or annoyed she just sounds sad and lonely

“What?” He asks back, confused with the idea of her not having anyone to call

“I don’t have friends” The blonde glares at him again, a wounded look in her face “Why are you making me say this out loud? Isn’t enough to see how everyone avoids the crazy girl who can’t control her body? How no one wants to even sit next to me? Do you have to make me spell it to you how lonely I am?”

Scott blinks because he never saw it before, or rather he never really paid attention to it, to her before.

Erica is new to their class, started only two months ago but everyone knows she has seizures and that her parents changed her to their class because of the intense bullying she suffered in the other one, but Scott never realized that his own class is just continuing the circle, giving her curious looks like she is something on display, whispering behind her back, never choosing her when they have to do something together.

Scott isn’t a little kid and he knows how mean people can be, how they will put others down to make themselves feel better, more powerful- _His dad did it, mom never really said it but Scott is a clever kid and he knows that he liked to put others down, his coworkers, his friends, his mom, Scott_ \- but he also knows that apathy is a way of being really mean that few people recognize as such, his mom always tells him that not saying anything in certain circumstances means that you agree or don’t care about what’s being done and looking at Erica, still curled in a ball, refusing to meet his eyes, Scott is hit with the realization that he has seen her being bullied countless times but did nothing but watch or ignore.

“I’m sorry”

“What?” It’s her turn to look confused

“For not doing anything, for contributing to the way everyone treats you, it’s not fair and you don’t deserve the way we have been treating you” Scott says it with the confidence and fire of a 11 years old with a heart too big for his chest

And Erica flashes him a small smile, grateful and tired and Scott wonders if it’s the first time someone told her that. He vows it’s not going to be the last.

He does his best to engage her in a conversation, talking about classes, making fun of teachers and sharing their opinions on comics and videogames and they are equally excited to realize they share practically all of their favorites. The nurse watches them talking, Erica looking more alive than she ever seen gesturing about some new plotline and badass women while Scott nods and shares his own opinion, both forgetting their own worries for once.

If Magda waits longer than the necessary to send them back to class…. Well no one needs to know.

The next day when Scott arrives in class and sees Erica sitting alone with her head down pretending she isn’t hearing the taunts thrown her way because of the seizure and the way she looks, Scott knows exactly what to do. He dumps his bag in the seat next to her and flashes her the biggest smile he can muster, he can’t stop people from being mean to her but he can become someone she can count on, can offer her the same support Stiles and Theo offer him.

So that’s how Erica Reyes finds herself becoming fast friends with Scott McCall.

And the next week when Stiles bounces back pretending nothing happened and Theo is healthy enough for his parents to kick him to school they just arch their eyebrows to Scott who smiles and introduces them with a smile. Erica doesn’t have time to worry about being rejected by the two of them, and mostly likely losing Scott’s friendship as a result, before Stiles is claiming the seat beside her asking about her favorite tv shows and if she likes comic books and dramatically begging her to join him in the guest of showing Theo and Scott how superior DC is to Marvel.

She fits with them, a lonely girl, a loser, a kid with too much baggage, with eyes too guarded and a heart too big. The trio becomes a quartet as if it’s the more natural thing in the world and their family grows and thrives.

* * *

Matt Daheler is an accident.

Theo knows that he is his neighbor, that they go to the same school and that both of them are losers, but they belong to different groups of losers- Theo has Scott, Stiles and Erica, Matt got Isaac Lahey- and Theo doesn’t remember ever talking with the other boy, he always thought that if they had to interact it would be about school, so clearly because things never happen in the way Theo expects them to, his first words to his neighbor are everything but what he expected.

“What the fuck happened to you?”

He didn’t mean to say it out loud but it’s out before he can stop himself and Matt looks at him like a deer caught in the headlights. They are both outside their homes in the middle of the night, Theo is star gazing while laying on the grass, closer to his neighbor’s house than his own trying to pretend the night didn’t happen, and Matt looks like a zombie fighting to unlock his door with shaking hands. Actually, with shaking _everything_ , it’s not a really cold night but Matt is drenched from head to toe and without a coat, even from afar Theo can see his red puffy eyes and the tears still rolling down his cheeks and something unpleasant starts to form inside him.

Theo isn’t the nicest of his friends, a title that belong to Scott no doubt, but his chest aches with worry and it pushes him to approach Matt who is still frozen in place and only starts moving again with Theo stops in front of him.

“Nothing, nothing happened” Matt chokes out in the most unconvincing voice ever but he manages to unlock his door and rushes inside Theo following him after a quick glance to the garage confirms that Matt’s parents aren’t home

“ _Bullshit_. You want me to believe that you just got magically drenched and decided to wander around in the middle of the night? No offense but you look like shit” Theo knows he is actually being a creeper and invading a strangers house to demand answer for something that isn’t his business but there is clearly something wrong with Matt and he spend enough time with Scott to be influenced by his need to help everyone

“Thanks you are making me feel really better” Hum, sass is good, but he is still shaking and there is a haunted look in his blue eyes “Now get out, i told you nothing happened, nothing you heard me?”

Theo isn’t impressed.

He just stares at Matt who stares back but clearly, he is in a better position because if there is one thing Theo knows is how to spot the signals of someone breaking down from stress and Matt looks close to shattering, it’s clear on the way he has not stopped shaking, in the wild haunted look in his eyes, the way he is moving around as if he can’t stay still, it makes Theo think of Stiles and his heart clenches a bit.

It takes a few minutes top before the other boy just kneels down sobbing, his breath labored and shallow and another thing Theo knows to spot pretty well is a panic attack starting so with his heart in his throat he rushes to Matt’s side putting his hands on his shoulders what proves to be A Big Mistake™ because Matt recoils away from his touch and his breathing become worse as he starts to speak almost hysterically trashing away from him in blind panic, seeing things that are not there.

Theo knows the feeling better than he likes to admit.

“I’m not going to say anything, I swear I’m not going to say anything, i will go away and i will never come back please please i swear i will not tell anyone, i wouldn’t just let me go please let me go i can’t breathe, I’m leaving, I’m not ever going to come back, oh my god i can’t breathe, I’m so sorry i’m sorry let me go, please let me go I can’t breathe I can’t I can’t….”

“Matt! Matt it’s okay, it’s okay you are in your house right now, you are safe, you are in your house and I’m Theo, remember? Your neighbor Theo? Nothing is going to hurt you here I promise you but you need to breathe with me okay? Just breathe with me right?”

It takes Matt a long time before he starts coping Theo’s breathing and an even longer time before the panic attack dies leaving the boy exhausted, both physically and emotionally. And Theo knows better than to take advantage of this to get his answer, it feels wrong to use his panic attack to make him talk even if Theo is both curious and deeply worried about that the fuck happened to reduce Matt to this mess, he knows for experience how mind crushing it is to come back from it, how vulnerable it feels, how raw everything is and how easy it is to relapse into panic again. He is debating about what is the best thing to do in this situation, what will work for Matt, if he should stay or leave, but Matt decides for him.

“Please leave me alone.”

So that’s what he does.

But what he saw doesn’t leave his mind, nags at him and keeps him awake at night and makes him look for Matt everywhere in school the next day but his neighbor doesn’t show up and neither does Lahey something he doesn’t fail to notice. When his friends ask what is wrong, what got him in this state, he shakes his head and tells them he doesn’t have the details to explain but recounts the strange encounter with his neighbor and is glad that they find it as worrying as him.

Lahey goes to school the next day, Matt still doesn’t show up and Theo is tempted to knock on his door but he sees that Matt’s parents are home and changes his mind last second.

In the third day both Matt and Lahey go to school but they don’t sit together, he sees Matt approaching his friend a couple of times but in all of them Isaac just bolts and leaves him alone and heartbroken and Theo is even more worried and curious, Stiles also sees what is happening and they exchange looks during the whole day, debating what to do because there is something wrong there. Theo is tempted to go to Matt’s house and demand answer again but it turns out he doesn’t need to.

Matt finds him and his group of weirdos in their free period and with a shaky voice and eyes full of tears asks. 

“Do you still want to know what happened?”

He pours his heart out, spills the truth like it burns his insides to keep them inside and Theo relates to it in a deep level, remembers the nightmares and the things that haunted him and how it physically hurt to keep it to himself, how he was always desperate to tell someone but at the same time was deathly afraid of the consequences of doing so. Theo looks at Matt and he sees himself and he is not the only one, Scott and Stiles are looking between the two of them as Matt recounts his nightmare like night.

When Matt finishes his story it takes all of them to stop Stiles from marching to his dad’s office and denouncing Coach Lahey and his older son, and an even bigger effort to stop Erica from marching up to Isaac and punching him in the face- Theo does agree with both of those reactions but Matt don’t want that and they all agree that it’s important to let him decide for himself what he wants to do in this situation.

And they are kids, they are 11 years old kids who have been kicked by life too much and too hard and this made them kinder, more understanding than people older than them so when they see Matt alone the next day, Isaac moving seats as far away from him as he can, they do what they think it's the right choice and respecting his wish for secrecy they just decide to take matters in their own hands.

So Matt is an accident, but he fits in their group like he was meant to be there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bold of anyone to assume I ever forgot that Matt deserved some goddamn therapy and friends bc coach lahey is a irresponsible piece of shit! Im itching to get Isaac away from him and safe but I cant do that yet bc then I will mess the story beyond repair and I don’t think I can come up with ideas for season 2 if I do that, but Isaac is getting his happy ending I promise I would never let him down like the show did by forgetting him in goddamn France.  
> Also Erica Reyes deserved better.


	4. Chapter 4

They grow closer with a quickness born of shared secrets and whispered fears that they can’t find in themselves to share with anyone else.

Their secrets, or most of them, go like this:

Stiles doesn’t talk about his mom, hides his pain behind smiles and jokes and cutting sarcasm that sometimes is borderline cruel but Scott and Theo see through his mask as if it’s not even there and Erica and Matt learn to do the same, to see when the smile has too much teeth, when the laugh lasts a bit too long, is a bit too loud, when he moves around as if trying to fill the space.

Stiles doesn’t curl in himself when he is sad, he tries to stretch himself, gets louder, his words so fast it’s hard to keep up with him, sentences half formed as his mouth can’t keep up with his brain, moves more quickly, gestures around almost hitting those who stand too close. And they all learn what to do, they don’t say anything because words are meaningless when Stiles is in that state but a grounding touch works wonders and they learn how to deal with the panic attacks, how to calm him down, how to deal when his ADHD is off the roofs, to let him speak nonsenses that maybe don’t even make sense to him but make him feel better to say out loud.

Stiles can’t talk to his dad about his mom, can’t bring himself to touch a wound that is still bleeding and raw as if it was made that day. His logic side, the side that knows his father loves him more than anything in the world and that nothing will change that, insists that it would do good to both of them, but the bigger side, the emotional one that whispers things in his ear is always more convincing, playing with his self doubt and self blame and reminding him that maybe talking about it will make his dad finally realize it was all his fault, that he somehow ruined everything and caused their pain and Stiles can’t live in a world where his dad hates him.

So he not-talks about it with his friends instead, jumps into the chance of talking Erica’s ears off about that new comic, into Scott’s warm hugs, into the easy banter with Theo, into the way Matt listens as he talks about Lydia Martin and gives only mildly judgmental looks. It doesn’t heal the wound but it makes it less painful.

Scott tries to pretend he doesn’t miss his dad and then feels soul crushing guilt about the fact that that is a lie. He misses his dad and it feels like someone is squeezing his heart. Scott never utters a word to his mom about this feeling, hides it from her because he _knows_ she will somehow blame herself, knows that it will make a guilty expression settle on her features and that is not something Scott will cause because he _knows_ who the wrong one is and it’s not Melissa.

He knows his dad has a problem, that he is not the type of man he and his mom deserve to have around, that he became more of a burden, something they had to deal with their teeth gridding together. He was nothing but a shadow of the husband Melissa loved and of the father that Scott was proud of having. But he left a hole in his life and it still hurts.

It hurts because Scott knows his dad is a douche but there are moments where he misses him; the him of the good days who taught him lacrosse and roasted marshmallows in their backyard and told funny bedtime stories, Scott misses that loving cheerful dad and feels guilty because that dad was never really there in those last months. Guilty because he left them with nothing and his mom is slaving herself at the hospital to keep them living the way they did and missing the man partially responsible for this situation feels like betrayal.

It feels good, liberating even, to be able to share his dark secrets with people who understand and don’t judge, people who will not feel hurt by his feelings, it feels even better when he doesn’t have to actually say it because they pick the clues on his behavior even if Scott himself doesn’t know what kind of hints he gives, but whatever they are his friends pick on them with an astonishing quickness. It feels good to have people reassure him he is not selfish, that it’s normal to miss someone even when they are assholes (Theo confess one day that he misses hanging out with Tara even if in the last years his older sister is aloof and a bit mean, making remarks that go past cheeky and land on cutting), and mostly that it’s not a betrayal to his mom, they help him realize it doesn’t mean that he loves her less or that he blames her, it just means that he was used to have another person around and that left a hole and it’s normal for it to ache even if it was filled with love from another, better, person. His friends save him from overthinking, from taking the weight of the world on his shoulder.

Theo’s parents on the other hand are never really there so he has nothing to miss, he has never know anything but the dismissive stares, the feeling of not being good enough, of always falling short, of being the ugly duckling where Tara exceeds on everything she tries, even when they are standing next to each other his parents are hardly ever looking at him or paying attention to what he is doing, as long as he is not giving them “unnecessary work” they couldn’t care less about what he is doing or where he is at. Their eyes never land on him, they look at each other, at Tara, at their jobs but never at their youngest son and it drives him up the wall.

So Theo takes to testing the limits, to seeing how much he has to push until they finally stop looking past him to finally acknowledge that he is there, that he exists and is in fact their responsibility as much as Tara, that she is not an only child no matter how much they seem to want her to be, how much they wish Theo never existed. He sneaks out at ungodly hours, spends the night awake, eats junk food in the place of meals, leaves his things laying around without care and yet receives nothing in return, he doubts they even realize what he is doing and it stings, hurts in a way he hates because why do he care so much about people who don’t give a shit?

They only care when it’s something that affects their images, or their jobs and it leaves him aching inside. Forgetting his homework? Having an asthma attack that sends him to the hospital because nobody bothered to get him another inhaler? Skipping class because he was feeling sick? Getting into even the smallest argument in school? All unforgiven things so Theo takes to doing it just to spite them. He feels angry all the time, pissed at his parents but mostly at himself because clearly _he_ is the problem, if he wasn’t like that they would love him like they love Tara, maybe if he wasn’t so wrong those _things_ would not have hurt him.

But when he starts walking down this path his friends are the only thing capable of grounding him, Stiles’ ramblings about class and his new idea, Scott’s hand on his shoulder, his hugs, his touches that bring him down to earth, Matt’s silent understanding and companionship, Erica’s willingness to pick his calls no matter the time when the silence becomes too much. Theo still feels angry and wrong and dirty some days, but his friends are wonderful and good and they love him, he _knows_ they do, and they wouldn’t love a monster so Theo uses it to convince himself he is not one.

Erica’s mom has the best intentions in the world, Erica knows it, know her mom loves her to death but that love is so big, so full that it’s suffocating. It feels wrong, selfish even, to complain about a mother who loves her too much when her friends are either missing a parent or have cold uncaring ones but sometimes the girl feels like she can’t breathe, can’t take a step without her mother’s shadow falling over her, worrying herself sick about Erica’s health, never allowing her to do anything, refusing to take her to the park, giving her teacher an earful because she let Erica in the sandbox, never signing the permissions, always giving the school staff long lectures about her and what she could not do, regulating what she could eat, what she could watch.

Her mother makes her feel fragile, something broken that everyone has to stay away from in order to avoid damaging, her mother acts like Erica is made of glass that is already damaged, a castle of cards left outside, and it makes her feel wrong in her own skin, worse than losing control of her body because of a disease since it feels like her mom is taking away her control over her whole life, keeping her away from the things that would help her have friends, after all who would want to hang with the weird kid who couldn’t do anything fun? Whose mom is always watching and judging and prohibiting?

Her dad is better, not as suffocating, but he looks at her with scared eyes, as if afraid she will have a seizure at any given instant and that fear makes him allow his wife to continue her overprotectiveness instead of stopping her even if he knows it’s what Erica wants and needs. Sometimes, when her mother prohibits her from going out with her friends yet again and her father stands and watches even as she begs and begs, Erica hates him a bit just to feel crushing guilt afterwards because he too is doing out of love. He worries and what kind of child hates their father for wanting the best for them? For wanting her to be safe?

But her friends don’t call her selfish, don’t give her dirty looks for feeling that way. When they finally convince her to spill her guts about what is bothering her so much she is meet with nothing but understanding and support and are them, those wonderful boys with big hearts who sacrifice adventures for the sake of hanging out with her in spaces her mom demands “safe”, that convince Erica that it’s okay to feel like that, that sometimes too much love can hurt and good intentions don’t always lead to good things, but more than that, more than the understanding and the support, her boys make her feel accepted, make her feel normal. And that means the world for a girl used to be looked at as a freak or as a fragile doll.

Matt’s parents, just like Theo’s, are never around until they feel like it’s necessary to “bring him down to earth”, they never really talk with him unless it’s to judge, demand something or belittling him for a failure, for a grade that isn’t perfect, a sock left on the floor, a dish not washed, a missed homework, the slightest thing turned into the worst failure they ever witnessed. Everything in their house must be spotless, perfect and shining and Matt must be the same, must hold himself to their standards and stop wasting their time by making them have to correct him all the time.

They are always comparing him to other kids, to other people, giving example upon example of how better he could be if he just tried harder, if he listened more, always with the angry mouths and disappointed eyes. They demand and demand and give nothing back, not even the tiniest scrap of attention and love. It took Matt a long time to realize that that wasn’t normal, wasn’t the way parents should treat their kids, that he shouldn’t feel suffocated in his own home, afraid of making too much noise, taking too much space, that it is not normal and it’s not okay that he freaks out over the slightest mistake and is always expecting the adults around him to call him out on them.

He can’t talk to them about anything, can’t spill his nightmares or what happened in that terrible night because he knows that, _if_ they believe him, they will manage to put the blame on his shoulders because it was him who sneaked out the house, he who went to that man’s house, he who must have done something to provoke such a reaction.

Matt always felt like he was drowning but after that experience it became just too much to deal with on his own, he doesn’t know what would happen with him, how much he would fall into despair and loneliness, if it wasn’t for his group of weirdos who took him in their friendship like it was the easiest thing in the world and Matt found himself overwhelmed with how easy it was to talk with them, how he could relax and for blissful moments not worry about doing everything perfectly, about being in control, he could just be, could just breath because they wouldn’t judge him, wouldn’t throw his mistakes in his face and hold it against him. They didn’t demand pieces of himself, they took what he was willing to offer and gave pieces of themselves back to him, tried to help him unlearn all the things his parents drilled into his brain and Matt is 100% that his friends are his anchors, what keep him grounded and breathing.

They help each other in ways they feel the adults in their life can’t, but it doesn’t mean that their trusted adults don’t play any roles in their proximity. Melissa and Noah were as quickly as their children to open their arms to Erica and Matt, accepting that they are now a part of their son’s intimate circle and doing their best to include them just as much, learning the correct way to deal with Erica in case of a seizure, making sure to pay attention to Matt’s allergies, not even raising any eyebrows to sudden demands of sleepovers.

Alan also accept the eventual two new assistants as easily as he did the original three, amused beyond limits when Erica makes an actual color coded routine of feeding and petting time so that each animal receives the same amount of affection and care, going over with it Alan to make sure it’s good for the animals. It brings life to the clinic, a good kind of noise that stops Alan from isolating himself and replaying mistakes and pains from the past.

(His clients don’t even bat an eyelash when they arrive to drop or pick up their pets and are met with 5 kids who know by memory exactly what their pet needs and what Deaton did to help them. They all just accept it and soon enough it becomes something they come to expect, being surprised when they arrive and find the veterinarian alone.)

And of course, Alma is nothing but utterly supportive as well. Her house becomes their favorite place to hang out at because they all love her and it makes her happy not only to see her house full but to see that her boys are happy and making friends, she never said it or tried to imply, but the kids know she feels lonely without her husband and children and if their presence helps her then they are more than glad to help.

Her house is also their favorite place to have sleepovers at because Mrs Keaton has a weird sixth sense that allows her to know exactly what to do when one of them wakes up in the middle of the night and can’t go back to sleep.

They all have nightmares and it breaks her heart into tiny little pieces because she remembers her own children, now all grown up living their best lives, and how at that age they hardly had bad dreams and when they had it was about bad grades or falling or any other childish fear that a hug and hot cocoa would fix without any consequence.

Those nightmares aren’t as easily chased so she must be creative and read between the line, try to guess the blanks they keep to themselves.

Erica doesn’t have nightmares as much as she has sleepless nights, nights where her mind refuses to calm down and after hours of turning around in the bed she goes to the kitchen with puffy eyes and a little of blood in her lip where she bite hard enough to cut, she always looks exhausted and haunted clutching the instructions her mother makes her carry everywhere in case of a seizure. Trying to get her to sleep is useless and talking about it only makes her curl into herself and close off so Alma just makes sure there are always home baked butter biscuits and hot cocoa, usually along with a few comics who will take her mind out of it.

Likewise there are days where Scott can’t sleep, he tries to pretend but it never works and after a while he confess to Alma that he is worried about his mom because she tries to pretend everything is fine, that they are alright, but Scott can see the bags under her eyes and sometimes she can’t hide the bills before he sees them and it makes him anxious, desperate to help but not knowing him. Other nights he can’t sleep thinking about his dad, about whiskey breath and hard vicious words that still eat him inside, still makes him doubt his abilities, still makes him wonder if he is good enough. With Scott staying in the house doesn’t work so Alma has taken to going on a walk with him and whatever other kid is awake that day, the exercise cleans his mind and tires his body enough to allow him to sleep and when they return he is out like a light.

Stiles shifts between the two, nights where he can’t stand laying down and nights where he bolts awake with a heavy irregular breathing, he never talks about the reason behind it but he also sleep talks and Alma can connect the dots very easily. When he can’t stop thinking the way to get him to calm down is chamomile and a notepad where he can write everything that runs through his mind and then tear it until only small pieces remain, it calms and grounds him more than words and touches.

Matt has nightmares almost every night and more times than not he screams everyone awake and is always, always, struggling to breath, clawing at his own neck like there is something there cutting his air supply, eyes wild and begging as he chokes unable to take a breath. Drowning, Scott explains grim faced and all too sad one night after everyone went back to sleep, he was drowning. Alma is worried, mentions a therapist or talking with his parents but his eyes grow large and scared and he denies so strongly she drops the matter feeling heaviness and suspicion grown in her heart. Usually after his nightmares everyone is awake and they just migrate to his room or to the living room where they sit together and just let Matt knows he is safe and loved.

Theo is harder to deal with because unlike the others he holds his emotions and reactions close to his heart, can pretend to be sleeping better, muffles his cries and other sounds of distress with an easiness that can only come from practice. And it drives Alma mad because she remembers clearly as day the effects that his early nightmares had, the creatures haunting his nights, and even if they apparently are gone she can’t shake the feeling they may return. So Theo requites a closer attention and more prodding to get him to admit his bad dreams but Alma learns to see the signals, takes into waking up at random times to check on the boys when they are sleeping over, and is always quickly to wake him up and take him to the kitchen, tv on for background noise and some tea to warm him up inside.

She loves those kids like the grandchildren she hardly sees and watching them grown is one of her biggest joys in life.

 

* * *

 

The seizure comes out of nowhere.

Theo was answering a problem in the blackboard when he heard the faint sound of something hitting the floor and muffled yells of confusion and fear that made him turn fast with a sinking feeling of what was happening.

And sure enough there was Erica in the floor in the middle of a pretty bad seizure and the whole class including the teacher was just staring in frozen horror only snapping out of it when Theo moves to her, pushing everything away from her body and rolling Erica on her side already counting how long the seizure is lasting.

“Shouldn't we put something in her mouth?” Someone asks in a panicked tone

“Right? Don't anyone have a scarf or a piece of something soft we can use?”

“Someone hold her down!”

“What about putting something under her head?”

“That would be more comfortable wouldn't it?”

“Are all of you fucking stupid?” Theo almost yells feeling angry and worried and ready to punch them in the face “You can break her teeth putting something in her mouth for fucks sake. She keeps instructions of what to do in this situation in her bag”

He is angry at them but mostly he is worried, worried because the seizure isn't stopping and it's been a long time since Erica had one this long, worried because what would happen if he wasn't there? Would they put something in her mouth? Would anyone think on rolling her on her side and keep count on how long the seizure lasts? Would they just stare in some sick fascination?

Her movements are slowing down and Theo is starting to relax when he spots the wet spot growing in her pants.

Fuck.

Fuck not here, not in front of them. Not where they will see and make fun of her, he knows how humiliated Erica would feel and panicking Theo pulls his jacket from the back of his chair and throws over her glancing around to see if anyone noticed it from where the teacher pushed them to, away from Erica and Theo and that is when he sees the phones.

He sees red in the same instant, a fury so big it takes all his control to stay with Erica, who is so more important right now, rather than to punch those idiot insensitive little bastards. Someone must have called the nurse because sure enough she is there pushing Theo away and asking questions to the teacher that he answers in her place when the woman look flustered and unsure of everything.

Making sure the seizure has completely stopped and the nurse is looking after her Theo focus on the two kids with the cellphones who are just now lowering them and whispering to each other. He takes the phones from them before the two even realize what he did and when they step forward, angry faces and shaking fists he punches both in the face, feeling more than hearing as their noses crack, and for good measure throws their phones in the wall.

He barely registers the teacher’s shouts or the hands pulling him away from the bastards who are holding their bleeding noses and screaming like Theo just tried to murder them. _Good_ , he thinks viciously, _serves them right_.

The three of them end up in the principal’s office along with Erica because the teacher deemed she was involved in why Theo broke two noses, the two assholes have ice packs to their broken noses and their parents behind them looking furious and scandalized, Erica looking pale and shaken is more leaning against her mother than properly sitting and the woman is petting her head with utter care, Theo is sitting a little farther, looking at his nails while the minutes go by and his parents don’t show signals of showing up.

“They are not coming” He says for the third time to the principal, doing the most to not roll his eyes “They have a meeting today, just get over with it.”

The man ignores him but another five minutes pass and the other adults are agitated and annoyed and he finally gives up straightening his back and staring at Theo when he begins.

“As I informed all the presents by the phone Mr Raeken is responsible for your son’s broken noses and we are here to discuss what happened there and what should be the punishment for those involved.”

“But we didn’t do anything!” Asshole 1 exclaims, going forward in his chair “The freak just came to us for no reason and broke our noses, if someone deserves to be punished it’s him not us!”

“Exactly!” Asshole 2’s mother murmurs, cradling her son’s head to her like he is a baby “My son had his nose broken by this kid and you are thinking about punishing him? For what? He didn’t land a hand on this boy!”

“Theo” The principal says, voice so forced it didn’t come close to sounding sweet “Care to explain why you did this?”

“They were filming.” He spits out glaring at the two assholes

“Sorry?” The principal asks frowning “Filming what?”

“They were filming Erica’s seizure, to share it with the rest of the school or whatever sick reason their sick heads came up with.” He explains in a biting tone “So if you want to punish me go ahead but I’m not going to do that bullshit of apologizing to those assholes because I’m not even a bit sorry for what I did and I would do it again.”

“They were doing _what_?” Erica’s mother stands up at the same time that Erica’s eyes widen in horror, her expression furious

“Is it true?” The principal asks the two dickheads, his expression closing even more “Because if it’s true then we have a serious problem here boys.”

“Of course not”” Asshole 2 says but his eyes are wide as he looks at Erica’s mother “The freak is lying to save his skin!”

“Yeah! We aren’t doing it” Asshole 1 tries to chuckle but sounds weird, like he never expected this to be a big thing and doesn’t know how to act

“Check their phones” Theo tells the adults in the room when their parents look unsure but start to open their mouths to defend their precious children

And voila, the video was there for all the adults to see.

Theo tries to not be _too_ smug when Erica’s mother starts to bring the fear of the lord into the room. Everyone knows the woman is overprotective to the bone but it’s very satisficing to watch it acting in Erica’s favor for once. While she rants at both the adults and the assholes in the room Theo approaches Erica and takes her hand in his, squeezing it.

“Thank you” She whispers, hanging her head “I can’t believe they did it. I can’t believe they filmed it to humiliate me for the whole school to see.”

“You don’t have to thank me” He whispers back fiercely squeezing her hand harder “This is what friends are for and you know I never miss a chance to punch assholes in the face. It looks good in my badass resume.”

“Does it go before or after crying over Toy Story?” She whispers back, smiling for the first time since the seizure

“Shut up Reyes, you know who cried their eyes out over The Land Before Time.” He pretends to pout, relieved at seeing her relax a bit

“Yeah, Stiles.” She answers still smiling “Unlike you losers me and Matt can hold our tears.”

“Liar, I remember you sobbing into Mrs McCall’s pillows when we watched The Fox and the Hound”

“Only a soulless monster won’t cry over that” She murmurs back watching as her mother turns her rant at Asshole 1’s father when he dares to say something “At least I didn’t cry over Bambi.”

“Low blow”

She laughs at him but Theo only smiles back.

In the end the two assholes get a week of detention, he gets 3 days of suspension and one week of detention, and two very very angry parents once they finally turn up at school that he makes a show of ignoring but that is okay.

The video gets deleted, no one realized Erica’s incident during her seizure too engrossed in his little fight, and his friend don’t get humiliated in front of the whole school. Theo would accept a way worse punishment for this result.

Friends matter, those three weirdos who pull him out his own darkness on the daily matter more than Theo ever expected people to matter to him. And when they smile at him, when they call him to hang out, when they talk to him and listen to him he knows he matters to them in a way he never expected to matter to anyone.

 

* * *

 

 

In another universe Scott doesn’t hear a puppy crying, in another universe there is no reason for them to hang out with Dr Deaton and when Theo starts to act weird, start to distance themselves they have no idea of what to do, they are forced to watch him slowly disappear from their lives.

In another universe Tara dies and the Raeken family leaves town. Theo falls into the trap laid by the Doctors. Scott ends up not going to the infirmary because with no Theo he didn’t have the need to lean his inhaler, didn’t forgot to tell his mom he needed another one because it never needed to be replaced so he still had it with him to use. Erica stays alone in there and no one sits next to her in class. There is no neighbor to talk with Matt when he arrives drenched and panicking, no one willing to hear what happened, no one to help him with the aftermath. There is no one to cover Erica and make sure the video of her seizure is erased and in the other day it is used to humiliate her in front of the school.

In another universe there is no one is Alma’s house when her pressure drops and she falls one late afternoon, no one to find her in the kitchen floor with a head wound where she hit it in the sink. In another life a concerned neighbor finds her when it’s already way too late.

In another universe where Leaf is never found those broken children grow without each other, have to fight their demons by themselves and some of them fail and fail hard.

In another universe monsters are made of lonely children.

But not in this one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi!!! So i'm really excited because this chapter kinda of closes the "before" part of this fic, in the next chapter i pretend to start with the shows events and how they change.  
> I actually have a lot of ideas about those five as friends before cannon starts but i think that if i actually write all of them in this it will get too long and will hardly move the plot along so maybe i will keep those ideas and make a spin off at some point.

**Author's Note:**

> The fic where the author says fuck it and decide to create a universe where the adults grow some braincells and help the kids of this city (Not Melissa or the Sheriff who did nothing wrong in their lives) and because i believe Deaton has a bid dad energy and we needed so much more of him interacting with Scott and the others!!!!  
> This is just my sandbox and im going to follow cannon but like not that closely, im picking out the stuff i like and everything else is going to the trash. Hope this pleases someone!


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